The rich man also died and was buried...

The Romans have a grim reminder for us, “Memento mori,” which literally means, “Remember you shall die.”

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It sounds rather morbid, but contemplating death leads us to live our life to the fullest.While death remains a scary reality, it leads us to put our earthly concerns in perspective and turns our gaze to eternal life.

The rich man in the parable lives in luxury, but is oblivious to the poor man Lazarus lying at his doorstep. He only has his eyes on himself... until death catches up to him. Whether we like it or not, our days in this world are numbered, and thus we should use them well—to love more deeply, to forgive more readily, to serve more generously.

First Reading - Jer 17:5-10

Thus says the Lord: Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh, whose heart turns away from the Lord.

He is like a barren bush in the desert that enjoys no change of season, but stands in a lava waste, a salt and empty earth. Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose hope is the Lord.